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What makes a healthy bowl?
March 27, 2009

healthybowl

Are salads healthy?

Oh yeah!  As a chef, registered dietitian and proud partner at Just Salad, I was a bit troubled by a recent piece on the Today show which asked,” how did the salad leap from a nutritional boon to a full-blown health hazard?”  While I completely agree that pitfalls exist in the world of salad, it is also a great opportunity to pile your bowl with tasty and healthful ingredients.

What makes a healthy bowl?

I’ve designed many Just Salad selections to deliciously offer:

1)     Four or more of the five fruit and vegetable servings we advised to consume daily. Last I checked Americans, on average, still haven’t passed the 2 serving/day marker (unless you include French fries). The risk of diseases like heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, osteoporosis and even obesity drop with increased fruit and vegetable intake.

2)     A fruit serving or two if you throw in cranberries, raisins, apples, avocado and tomato (yes, the latter two are fruits).

3)     A whole grain and/or legume serving. Think wheat berries, barley, white beans and lentils.

4)     A recommended daily serving of nuts and/or seeds. A dash of pumpkin or sesame seeds or small scoop of walnuts or almonds can add crunch, toasty goodness and nutrients (including healthy fats) to your bowl.

5)      The perfect portion (3 ounces) of healthy lean protein, such as chicken or turkey breast, tuna, marinated grilled tofu, egg.

6)      Delicious options for low-fat and fat-free vinaigrette’s.

Wanna design your own? Visit our Nutrition Calculator: http://www.justsalad.com/nutritioncalc/, and see how your selections can positively influence your salad. Also check out Our Food: to find out about the ingredients we use to put together fresh “one bowl meals”

Talk to me: laura@gigihudsonvalley.com. I’d love to hear your ideas and look forward to sharing some helpful tips to build a healthy salad (and avoid the pitfalls) next week.

cheflaura

Chef Laura




Just Salad Chicken Goes All Natural!
January 2, 2009

We are pleased to announce that our grilled chicken is now all natural, straight from Sanderson Farms! This means that our new chicken has:

  • No added hormones
  • No additives
  • No artififcial ingredients

Marinated for 24 hours before hitting the grill, this new chicken is out of this world. Make sure to stop by and try it out!

- Chef Laura